Sustainability Effort Launched

NC State is kicking off a series of spring events that highlight the university’s commitment to sustainability. Called “S.E.E. NC State,” the semester-long series will feature events that focus on key aspects of sustainability: society, economy and environment.

David Dean, outreach coordinator for the Office of Sustainability, said, “S.E.E. NC State accomplishes many goals of the university’s dedication to moving forward with more sustainable practices. To my knowledge, this is the first time so much campuswide support has been given to changing the culture of the campus.”

S.E.E. NC State will run throughout the spring semester with the theme “Spring into Sustainability.” Most of the activities being planned will be open to students and the community at large. They include an E-Waste recycling event on March 11, an environmental movie series at the campus cinema, an Energy Fair and Friends of the Library book sale on Earth Day on the Brickyard, a Lake Raleigh Clean Up on Centennial Campus, and a concert featuring local and regional bands on April 24 on Lee Field. The concert will run from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. and feature DJs between four bands.

S.E.E. activities got started earlier this semester with the annual Camp Out for tickets to the men’s basketball home game against rival UNC-Chapel Hill. The Jan. 16 event acted as the kickoff to RecycleMania, a national competition among universities to recycle as much as possible over a 10-week period. Last year, in its first year of participation, NC State achieved a no. 17 ranking nationally in the Grand Champion category. As of Feb. 14, the total recycled material collected is 40,600 lbs.

S.E.E. NC State will wrap up the weekend before exams with three unique events running April 24-25:  Nano Days, the E-Games presented by the Entrepreneurship Initiative and the annual Science Olympiad. More events and details are available on the S.E.E. Web site, http://www.ncsu.edu/see. More information on Earth Day 2009 can be found at http://www.ncsu.edu/earthday.

“One thing I’m most excited about is the fact we have meetings where representatives from across this vast campus come together for a common purpose,” Dean said. “Various colleges and university units are all in the same room together, sharing the responsibility that comes with becoming more sustainable. Coordinating these events under a common brand helps our community realize it is going to take participation of the entire population at NC State to reach the challenging goals we face moving forward.”

If you are interested in getting involved or would like to know more about what is going on, you are encouraged to contact the Sustainability Office:  http://www.ncsu.edu/sustainability or 513-0177.